Beat-up mechanism for looms



Dec. 21,1943. TURNER 2,337,431

BEAT-UP MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Nov. 26, 1942 INVENTOR RICHARD GzTURNER v ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 21, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Richard G. Turner, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application November 26, 1942, Serial No. 467,012

.20 Claims. (Cl. 139-190) This invention relates to improvements in beatup mechanisms for looms and it is the general object of the invention to provide such a mechanism which can be operated at high speed.

The usual beat-up mechanism employs a reed which swings back and forth in the loom to push the weft laid by the shuttle or needle to the fell of the cloth. In such mechanisms it is necessary for the reed to make a complete cycle of movement every pick of the loom. When looms operate at high speeds it is desirable to reduce the rate of motion of the beat-up and it is accordingly an important object of my present invention to provide a reed so mounted as to be moved forwardly and backwardly on one pick of the loom when the actuator moves in one direction and then be moved forwardly and backwardly when the actuator moves in the opposite direction on the next pick. In this way the reed actuator can operate at half loom speed but the reed will have a beating-up motion every pick.

It is a further object of my present invention to provide a beat-up mechanism with a form of reed dent having a cam or the like which moves transversely of the Warp shed and is operative at beat-up to push the weft to the fell of the cloth but is moved either below or above the plane of the weft inserting agent during that part of the loom cycle when weft is inserted into the shed. By this arrangement the part of the reed dents which actually beat the weft are out of the path of the weft inserter when the latter operates.

It is another object of my present invention to provide a reed mounted on links for motion transversely of the warp sheds and provide the reed dents with a cam so positioned'that its foremost edge strikes the fell of the cloth when the links as they rock about their pivots have moved the reed bodily to its foremost position. In this way the forward travel of the reed bodily with its supporting links is combined with the forward movement of the weft by cam in such a Way as to exert their maximum forward forces simultaneously.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth. v In the accompanying drawing, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a portion of the loom having my invention applied thereto,

Figs. 2 and 3 are diagrammatic views on an enlarged scale showing the beat-up mechanism in two different positions,'and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section on line 4-4 of Fig, 1.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, I have shown a loom frame having two side plates II] and I I between which may be located the usual weaving instrumentalities including front and back harness frames l2 and 13 the upper ends of which are connected by a strap [4 trained over sheaves l5 carried by the intermediate horn it of the loom frame. A shaft 20 is mounted in suitable bearings on the rear part of the loom frame and has secured thereto cams 2i and 22 to operate levers 23 and 24 which correspond, respectively, to the front and back harnesses l2 and [3. These cams have high and low dwells 25 and 26, respectively, the high dwells of the two cams being on opposite sides of the shaft. Shaft 20 may be driven in any approved manner and rotates once every second pick of the loom to cause one of the harnesses to be down on one pick and up on the next.

The warp sheds W and W controlled by the harness mechanism will be separated to receive a Weft inserting agent such as a needle N to intro-; duce the weft or filling F into the shed. When a needle i used the filling will ordinarily be'a double strand of thread, but if the weft inserting agent is a shuttle a single strand will be laid inthe sheds.

The form of harness mechanism shown in Fig. 1 is of a. simple type to produce a plain weave but I am not necessarily limited to such a barness operating mechanism although it is desirable to have some rotating part of the loom such as shaft 20 complete its rotation every second pick of the loom. Furthermore, th harness mechanism is illustrated as one of the weaving instrumentalities which has a two-pick motion and is shown herein to illustrate a part rotating in the time specified. While there is a relation between the warp shedding and the reed to be described hereinafter, my invention need not necessarily be operated by th actuator for the warp controlling mechanism. 7

In carrying a convenient form of my present invention into effect I secure a crank 30 to the shaft 20 and provide the crank with a forwardly extending connector 3|. A lower reed shaft 32 extending between and journaled on horns 16 has secured thereto an arm 33 to which the forward end of the connector 3| is attached. As seen in Fig. 4 right and left hand arms 34 and 35, respectively, aresecured to the shaft 32 and receive the lower rail 36 of a reed designated generally at R. An upper reed shaft 3"! also ex-,

tending between and journaled on th horns l6 is provided with right and left arms 38 and 39, respectively, similar to arms 34 and 35 to receive the top rail 50 of the reed. The top and bottom arms on the shafts 37 and 32, respectively, are of the same length and are preferably disposedat the same angle with respect to a horizontal line throughout the operation of the invention.

The reed comprises a plurality of dents 45 hung between the rails 36 and 40. Each dent has straight and narrow top and bottom portions 46 and il, respectively, between which is located a forwardly projecting cam 48 having top and bottom inclines 49 and 50, respectively, ointed by a high dwell which may be either straight and vertical, or cut on an arc of relatively large radius.

In operation, the shaft 28 will complete a revolution every second pick of the loom and will operate in well-known manner through the cams and their levers to raise and lower the harness frames in alternation to form different successive warp sheds into which weft is introduced. When the sheds are open to receive the weft the crank 38 will be insuch position as to hold the reed R either in its extreme up or down position. As shown in Fig. 1 the crank 30 is to the right of shaft 2% and the reed is raised with the arms which carry the reed rails inclined so as to hold the reed in its extreme rear position with respect to the fell of the cloth. When in this rear position the narrow parts 41 of the reed dents will be behind the weft inserting agent in the shed and this agent will therefore have maximum room in which to operate. After the weft has'been laid in the shed and the needle or shuttle is out of the shed shaft 32 will be rocked by a force transmitted through crank 30, connector 3| and arm 33 to lower the reed. 7

As the reed descends the rails 36 and 40 are moved bodily forwardly around the reed shafts at the same time that the reed dent cams move downwardly into the shed. When the reed is half shifted it will be moved from the position shown in Fig. 1 to that shown diagrammatically in Fig. 2, where the reed supporting rails are shown as being directly in front of their respective shafts and the dwell 5| of the reed dent cams isen gaging the fell of the cloth to beat up the filling F. At this time the harnesses will ordinarily be closed if the weave is a simple one up. and one down, and as shaft continues to rotate the warps will separate to form the next shed and the reed- R will continue to move downward ly to the position shown in Fig. 3 where it will be seen that the reed rails and the arms on which they are suspended have moved to levels'below the supporting shafts and also to their rearmost position relatively to the cloth fell. At this time the crank '30 is in a position opposite to that shown in Fig. 1 when the reed Was fully up, and the upper narrow part 26 of the reed dents is in the shed with the cam hump d8 low enough to be out of the path of the weft inserting agent.

When the reed descends from the positionof Fig. 1 to that of Fig. 2 the lower incline'iifl of thecam 48 engages the thread and acts conjointly with the forward motion of the reed to advance-the weft inthe shed. At thi time the weft is lying on the bottom plane of warps and will offer very little resistance to forward movement. As the reed nears its midposition the flattened substantially vertical high dwells. 5i engage the filling to complete the beat-upand move the thread to the fell of the cloth by a force which is perpendicular, or nearly so, to the cloth. When the reed is moving upwardly a similar action results, the incline 49 acting conjointly with the forward movement of the reed to advance the filling toward the fell of the cloth and beat-up i completed by the dwell 5 I From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a simple form of beat-up mechanism by wh ch the reed is moved in one ,direction on one pick of the loom and in the opposite di rection on the next pick and is effective in each of the movements to advance the weft toward the fell of the cloth. It will also be seen that the reed dents are provided with inclined cam edges which act during the vertical movement of the reed to advance the filling in the shed. It will further be noted that the links on which the reed is suspended and the cams of the reed dents are so related that these two features act simultaneously to contribute their maximum effect in advancing the filling. When the reed is adjacent to its extreme position th narrow parts 46 and 4'! of the dents are behind the weft inserting agent and the came 48 are either above or below the plane. of movement of the agent and in such position as not to interfere with the insertion of filling in the warp shed. While I have shown a shaft 20 which operates the harness mechanism as the means by which the reed may be given a complete reciprocation every second pick of the loom, I do not wish to be limited to this shaft a driving mean for the reed, inasmuch as any mechanism having a two-pick motion can be used to give motion to the reed as described.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed between which the warp threads pass, means to mount the reed for vertical movement relatively to the warp shed and cause the reed when moving in one direction vertically to move first toward and then from the fell of the cloth, and mecha, nism acting in timed relation with the introduc; tion of weft into the warp shed to move the reed vertically insaid one direction and cooperate with said means to move the reed toward the fell after introduction of weft into said shed and then away from the fell preparatory to the introductionof the next weft into the next shed.

2. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed be-. tween which the warp threads pass, means to cause each end of said reed to have similar and simultaneous arcuate movements toward and from the fell of the cloth when the reed ismoved transversely of the warp, and mechanism to. move said reed transversely of the warp sheds and cooperate with said means to move said reed first toward and then away from. the fell of the cloth for each transverse movement of the reed.

3. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp. shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents between which the Wa p, threads p ss a pair of pivots, one above and the other belowthe warp shed, a link movable about, ea h Qf said, pivots, one link connected to the top. ofthe reed;

and the other connected tothe bottom of the reed, and means to rock said links with a continuous motion about their pivots and cause said links to move first toward and then from the fell of the cloth to give said reed a movement in a beat-up direction to advance the weft thread in the shed and then a movement in the opposite direction to provide room for the next weft thread as said links swing about their respective pivots.

4. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reedhaving dents between which the warp threads pass, means to cause the upper and lower ends ofsaid reed when moved vertically in a given direction to move in a direction first toward and then from the fell of the cloth, and mechanism to move the reed vertically in said given direction.

5. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp threads pass, a link pivoted to the upper end of the reed and a second link pivoted to the lower end thereof, a pivot for each link, one pivot above and the other below the warp, said pivots so located and the links so proportioned that said links remain substantially parallel to each other when swinging about their respective pivots, said links being included in one direction with respect to the center line of the shed at the beginning of a beating-up operation and inclined in the opposite direction at the end of the beating-up operation, and means to cause said links to swing about their pivots and move from one to the other of said inclined positions and simultaneously cause the reed first to move toward and then away from the fell of the cloth.

6. In weft beat-up mechanism for a loom in which warp sheds are formed, a reed movable in a direction transversely of the sheds and also toward and from the fell of the cloth, means to move the reed transversely of the sheds, and mechanism cooperating with the means to move the reed toward and from the fell of the cloth for each transverse movement given to the reed by said means.

7. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having successive weft laying operations, a reed to beat the wefts toward the fell of the cloth, means to raise the reed after one weft laying operation and lower the reed after the next weft laying operation, and mechanism cooperating with said means to cause the reed when either rising or falling to move toward and then away from the fell of the cloth.

8. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for moving warp threads to form successive warp sheds into each of which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp threads pass, means to move said reed upwardly on one pick of the loom when one shed is formed and downwardly on the next pick of the loom when the next shed is formed, and means to support the reed in such a manner that when moving either upwardly or downwardly said reed moves first toward and then away from the fell of the cloth.

9. In weft beat-up mechanism for a loom having warp threads, at reed having dents between which the warp threads pass, two pivots for the reed, one above the warp for the upper end of the reed and the other below the warp for the lower end of the reed, means to connect the top and bottom ends of the reed to the correspondingipivot, and mechanism to give the reed successive opposite vertical movements and coop,- .erate with said means to move the reed first toward and then away from the fell of the cloth for each vertical movement of the reed.

10. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for moving warp threads to form successive warp sheds into each of which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp threads pass, means to move said reed upwardly on one pick of the loom when one shed is formed and downwardly on the next pick of the loom when the next shed is formed, and means to support the reed in such a manner that when moving either upwardly or downwardly said reed moves first toward and then away from the fell of the cloth.

11. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which weft to be beaten up is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp passes, and two cooperating means to effect beat-up of the weft to the fell of the cloth, one of said means operating to give the reed simultaneous forward and vertical movements, and the other means moving with the reed dents and operative due to vertical movement of the reed to impart movement to the weft toward the fell additional to the movement of the weft due to forward movement of the reed by said one means.

12. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents disposed vertically through the warp sheds, means to move the reed dents bodily toward the fell of the cloth and simultaneously vertically through the warp sheds, and means on the dents presenting inclined surfaces to move the filling toward the fell as the reed moves vertically and toward the fell of the cloth.

13. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which a weft thread is introduced, a reed having dents disposed transversely of the warp shed, means to move the reed simultaneously toward the fell of the cloth and transversely of the warp shed, and means on the reed dents presenting inclined surfaces which act due to the transverse movement of the reed dents relatively to the warp shed and in addition to the forward movement bodily of the reed dents to advance the weft toward the fell of the cloth.

14. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which weft to be beaten up is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp passes, means to cause the reed to move forwardly and vertically toward the fell of the cloth, and weft beating-up cams on the dents operative due to the vertical motion of the reed to advance the weft toward the fell as the reed moves vertically, the cams being so related to the means as to exert their maximum advancing effect on the weft when the reed is nearest to the fell.

15. In beat-up mechanism for a loom having provision for the formation of a warp shed into which weft to be beaten up is introduced, a reed having dents between which the warp passes, means above and below the warp to cause the reed to move in an arcuate path vertically and toward and from the fell of the cloth, and weft advancing cams on the dents operative due to vertical motion of the reed to advance the weft toward the fell, the foremost parts of the cams the'warp passes, means to give the reeda combined vertical and forward motion toward the cloth fell, and means on each dent defining a cam'hav-ing a forwardly inclined face terminating in a substantially vertical face, said faces being so related to the reed that the inclined face advances the weft rapidlydue to vertical movement of the reed during the early part of the forward movement of the reed and the substantially vertical faces push the weft to the cloth fell less rapidly as the reed reaches the limit of the forward movement thereof.

17. In a loom having means to form a warp shed, means acting in a zone in the warp shed and in a given interval in the loom cycle to enter and leave said zone during said interval to introduce weft into the warp shed, a reed the dents of which have edges relatively remote from the cloth fell and having other edges nearer the fell than said remote edges, and means to give the reed a combined vertical and forward motion toward the fell in such timed relation with the weft inserting interval as to place the remote edges in the shed behind said zone during said interval and move said other edges due to vertical movement of the reed into'the shed across said zone subsequentlto said interval to beat the weft laid in the shed during said interval to the cloth fell.

18. In a loom having means to form a warp shed, means acting in a zone in the warp shed and in a given interval in the loom cycle to enter and leave said zone during said interval to introduce weft into the warp shed, a reed the dents of which have edges relatively remote from the cloth fell and having other edges nearer the fell than said remote edges, and means to move the reed vertically with respect to the shed and said zone in timed relation relatively to said interval to place the remote edges of the reed dents in the shed behind said zone during said interval and :movesaid other edges into the shed and acrosssaid zone subsequent to said interval to beat the weft toward the fell.

19. Ina loom having means to form a warp shed, means acting in a zone in the warp shed and ma given interval in the loom cycle to enter and leave said zone during said interval to introduce weft into the warp shed, a reed the dents of which have upper and lower sets of edges relatively remote from the cloth fell and other edges between said sets of remote edges nearer the fell than said remote edges, and means to move the reed vertically with respect to the shed and said zone in timed relation relatively to said interval to place one of said sets of remote edges in the shed behind said zone during said interval and move said other edges into the shed across said zonesubsequent to said interval to beat the weft toward the fell and then move the other set of remote edges into the shed behind said zone during the next interval.

20. In a loom having means to form a warp shed, means acting in a zone in the warp shed and in a given interval in the loom cycle to enter and leave said zone during said interval to introduce'weft into the warp shed, a reed the dents of which have upper and lower sets of edges relatively remote with respect to the cloth fell and other edges between said sets of edges nearer the fell, and means to give the reed a combined vertical and back and forth motion relatively to the fell in timed relation with respect to said interval to place one set of remote edges in the shed behind said zone during said interval as the reed moves forwardly and place said other edges in the shed and across said zone due to vertical movement of said reed subsequent to said interval to beat the weft to the fell and then move the other set of remote edges into the shed behind said zone preparatory to the next interval as the reed moves away from the fell.

RICHARD G. TURNER. 

